Intel Solid-State Drives Get 40% Speed Boost

Intel released a new firmware update Monday specifically for its current range of 32-nanometer solid-state drives (SSD), the update assures that Intels X25-M series of products will receive a significant increase in performance.

The firmware, known as the SSD Optimizer update, makes use of the SSD TRIM command, which identifies which blocks of data aren't in use and uses that information to stop unnecessary disk rewriting. Through using this command the drives gain an impressive write-speed increase of up-to 40%. However, Intel have claimed that the improvements in speed can vary depending on the drive capacity. The 160GB unit sees write speeds jump from 70MB per second to 100MB per second.

Intel were keen to point out the firmware's timely release close to that of Windows 7, which supports the TRIM command natively. Improvements in speed will be the greatest for those making use of Microsoft's new operating system, but the firmware update can also benefit XP and Vista users via a new toolbox. Unfortunately those running other operating systems, including Mac OS X, will not be able to make use of the command due to a lack of support.